Building blocks
by Anne-Lilian
Summary: Reid is forced to do something that will haunt him for the rest of his life, but maybe something good can come from a tragedy? Rated T for the first chapter: mention of rape. Starts out dark, but gets better from the second chapter on.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first attempt at Criminal Minds fanfiction, so this might be a little ooc. Reid is a seriously hard character to write, so bear with me. I left the unsub vague on purpose because I'm not a psychologist, nor do I have any background in the subject, so to avoid glaring mistakes, I'm leaving it up to your imaginations. I did try to come up with an explanation, which I will post in a later chapter (if you want it now, just review or PM).  
**

**warning: this first chapter is a little dark, but it does get better after this. **

**disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds, which is probably a good thing, as I'd get far too distracted with each character's background, and not on the cases. **

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1:**

"This unsub is most likely a Caucasian man between 30 and 40 years old," Morgan said to the gathered members of the Annapolis PD.

"He probably suffered some kind of trauma, like the loss of a partner or child, perhaps both. He blames another man for this loss, which explains the overkill found on the male corpses," Reid said.

"This guy is all about control; he forces the husbands to rape their wives. When that no longer satisfied him, he started abducting complete strangers and repeating the pattern," Rossi added.

Prentiss took over. "There was a lot of overkill in the men, but the women only suffered a complete hysterectomy post mortem. They were killed fairly humanely by comparison, with blunt force trauma to the head. This tells us that he has a lot of rage, likely suppressed for a long time."

"He's most likely from a lower- to middleclass background," Hotch added. "This shouldn't be released to the media, the unsub might take more extreme measures. Thank you."

/*/

It was dark, Dr. Spencer Reid was fairly certain. The first thing he really noticed as his mind started to wake up, was that his head was throbbing. In the split second it took him to become aware of the sensation, though, he remembered what had happened and had already gone through several likely scenarios as to what had happened while he was unconscious. This was when he became aware of a second sensation. While his head hurt, it was cushioned on something fairly soft, as opposed to the rest of his body, which was sprawled on what he guessed was a concrete floor, and someone was running their fingers through his hair.

He cracked open an eye, but, as he suspected, he could barely make out anything in the semi-darkness. What he did see, though, puzzled him a little. He could see the underside of a delicate jaw, female, by the looks of it. Reid knew exactly where he was. Well, almost exactly. He knew he was in a basement, and he knew that he had been kidnapped.

According to the temporary profile he and his team had come up with, the unsub was a Caucasian male in his 30s to 40s, but he couldn't exclude that this woman was involved, so he kept quiet and closed his eyes again.

"Did you hear that?" She whispered, her hands stilling. Reid didn't respond.  
She stayed still for a moment longer before resuming her movement. Reid thought it might be a nervous habit, maybe she was a mother, or at least a caretaker.

The woman sighed. "I'm getting paranoid, sitting here in the dark by myself," she whispered. "Well, except for you, of course, but since you're still out of commission..." she trailed off. It was more likely that she was talking to fill the silence and get rid of her nerves than actually trying to have a conversation with an unconscious person. As Reid thought that, he deduced that she was probably just another victim, and decided to 'wake up'.

He opened his eyes all the way – not that it helped much in the dim light – and sat up slowly. The woman scooted back, but didn't say a word while Reid turned around to face her, and catalogued her appearance. In the dim light, he could see that she was wearing a torn blouse that had once been white with some kind of beading at the top and jeans that looked worse for wear. Her hair was curly and dark. He'd guess brown, but he really couldn't tell.

She bit her lip and stared at him. "Are– are you okay?" she asked hesitantly. Reid felt the back of his head. He had a big bump, but he couldn't feel any blood. "Yeah, I think so," he replied, letting his gaze drift around the room.

"I'm… I'm Annabelle, but most people call me Belle…" she introduced.

"Spencer Reid," he replied, his gaze stuck to the tiny strip of light at the bottom of what had to be a door.

The woman – Annabelle – sighed. "It's no use, I've tried to open the door, but unless you can pick a lock with your bare hands… All I've got on me is 3 dollars and a grocery list." She scooted further back until she was leaning against the wall.

Reid studied the room for a moment longer before getting up and pacing the, admittedly small, room. "This unsub always takes couples, why deviate from that pattern?" he asked himself more than his companion.

"Maybe he's trying to play matchmaker?" she suggested, a nervous chuckle accompanying her words. He stared at her then, frowning.

"I was joking. You know, it's something people do when they're nervous and want to break some of the tension…" she said, pulling her legs up and wrapping her arms around them.

"Aren't you afraid?" Reid asked curiously.

"Right this second? A bit. Don't worry, I'll start freaking out if I hear a noise or if that door opens," she joked faintly. "No one can stay frightened forever, it's too exhausting."

Reid looked at her with a frown. She was… strange, to say the least. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of a key turning in a lock.

"Here comes the panicking," Annabelle whispered, scooting as far back as she could. Reid stood up and moved to the side of the door, in an attempt to surprise the attacker. But as the door opened, no one stepped through.

Reid glanced at Annabelle, who shrugged and pushed herself up. Cautiously, he stepped into the doorway, sensing her right behind him. "Be quiet," he whispered, "and follow me."

Just as he stepped through the door, however, it slammed shut before Annabelle could follow him. He turned quickly, trying to find the handle only to realize that the door was remote controlled.

"Spencer?" Annabelle shouted from the other side of the door. "Are you there?"

She sounded seriously panicked. "I'm here, don't worry, I'll get you out, I promise!" he shouted back.

A sound behind him made him turn around. A silhouette was outlined against a bright light behind him. As Reid identified the noise as the cocking of a gun, he realized he had no other option than to hear this guy out. It might be his only way of saving Annabelle...

Spencer had been gone for a while and Annabelle was getting worried. What if he was dead already? What would happen to her? She shivered. The room was getting colder and she was losing hope. At least when Spencer was in the room she was able to keep her calm. Well, at least somewhat, considering...

Her head shot up as the door slid pen again, her heart starting to race. Almost instinctively, she started to retreat into the corner, trying to make herself smaller.

When Spencer appeared, unharmed, she almost launched herself at him in relief. He stumbled back a little in surprise, but quickly adjusted to hold her. "I'm so glad you're okay," she breathed, holding on to him tightly.

"I'm fine," he replied.

She hugged him for another moment, relishing in the moment of security, before she let him go and stepped back. "What did he want?"

Spencer looked uncomfortable. "He told me I had two choices... Neither of them are good," he replied, looking very serious.

Annabelle nodded. "Well, he is a serial killer... What were they?" Her heart was racing again, but with Spencer there and no sign of their captor, she was doing okay.

Spencer refused to look her in the eye. This wasn't going to be pretty. "He's a sexual sadist, but not usually a rapist himself..."

He was stalling, Annabelle knew, and that could never be good. "Stop it, Spencer, just tell me, I'm a big girl."

He paused, studying her face and setting his jaw. "Either he rapes you or I do," he replied flatly, but she could see the pain in his eyes.

Panic clawed at her heart as her breath left her. She turned to the wall and leaned her head against it. She had thought it'd be something like getting to choose who would die first or choosing between suicide and murder, but this? This was truly sick.

"I'd rather it'd be you," she whispered as tears stained her cheeks. Why did this have to happen to her? She turned to face him, but didn't bother to wipe away her tears. Let him see it, let him feel bad, a vicious part of her thought. It wasn't fair.

It wasn't fair...

Annabelle took a deep breath, and noticed for the first time that there was more light in the room now, giving her an opportunity to study him. He looked a bit like a geek, what with his sweater vest and tie. His hair was a mess, but she couldn't tell if that was his usual look or because of the situation.

Pushing past the panic and fear, she stepped closer to him, her tears coming faster than ever. She pulled him into a hug as she started sobbing in earnest. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he kept repeating in her ear. "I'm so sorry."

Gradually, Annabelle released her grip on him. Taking a step back, she reached for the edge of her shirt. Spencer looked pained, but didn't say a word as she pulled it off.  
This was, without a doubt, the worst day of her life...

**A/N: Review and let me know what you think! I'll try to update once a week.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I know I said I'd only update a week from now, but I felt like the first chapter didn't give a good enough feel for the story, so I decided to go ahead and post the second chapter. I'm writing ahead (I'm at chapter 4 now), so I'll try to update regularly. Next one will be next Saturday.**

**Warnings still apply, as does the disclaimer (sadly enough)**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 2:**

It had been eight months. Eight months since Reid's team had rescued him and Annabelle a day late from the unsub's basement prison, and eight months since he last heard of her. In those months, he'd learned quite a bit about her, mostly from the file. Annabelle was 25, she was a high school English teacher, and lived alone in an apartment in Annapolis. She had studied social work in college, and her parents and only sister lived in upstate New York. She had nary a speeding ticket on her name, let alone a criminal record. She had also quit her job after her abduction.

He never talked to anyone about what had happened in that basement, what he had been forced to do. As far as his team was concerned, they arrived just in time.

After they'd gotten out of the building, Annabelle had pushed away from the ambulance, ran over and pulled him into a brief hug. "I don't blame you," she had said through the tears, before running back to the ambulance, where her parents were waiting for her.

Not that he'd expected to hear from her again, in fact, this complete lack of presence in the world didn't surprise him. Of course she wouldn't contact the man who had… Why would she? He'd put her through a horribly traumatizing experience. He still worried sometimes, though. He had been tempted a few times to have Garcia look her up and see what she was up to, but he refrained from that. What he had done to her was bad enough, he didn't need to be keeping tabs on her, too.

He didn't think about her often, but when he did, the guilt would come crashing back in force. He felt responsible for her after what he'd done to her.

Reid shook his head and focused back on the now. They had just gotten back from a case in Columbia, Missouri, and he was exhausted. They still had a veritable mountain of paperwork to finish, but that could wait until tomorrow, tonight he was going to read one more chapter in the book he was reading before going to bed. Hopefully, he would be able to keep his mind off of this latest case: a sexual predator targeting young, teenaged girls.

He bid the rest of the team goodnight and headed home. By the time he got to his third floor apartment, he was ready to give up that one chapter and just go straight to bed. He stopped in his tracks, however, when he saw a brunette woman standing by his door. Her back was turned to him, but he could see her long, wavy brown hair.

Call it paranoia if you will, but his hand drifted towards his gun as he cleared his throat to get her attention.

When she turned, his heart skipped a beat. Metaphorically speaking, of course, as it is impossible for one's heart to _actually_ skip a beat without some kind of heart condition.

Annabelle smiled tiredly at him as she leaned back against the wall. "Hi, Spencer," she said quietly.

Reid dropped his hand from his gun and stepped closer. "Annabelle, what are you doing here?"

She was wearing a thick winter coat, as the season demanded, but when her hands dropped down to her belly, it was still obvious what she was trying to say.

Annabelle was pregnant.

"It's not really a conversation suitable for a hallway, is it?" she suggested mildly.

/*/

Reid was naming all the known numbers in pi. It was a habit of his, whenever he got nervous, and having a pregnant woman on his couch certainly qualified as a moment to use this strategy.

For all his mental prowess, he couldn't figure out why she would come to his apartment at 10pm. What should he do? Make tea or something? Well, it couldn't hurt to make the offer. "Do... Do you want some tea?" He offered awkwardly.

Annabelle smiled. She seemed so much more relaxed than him, when by all means, she should be the nervous one. "I can't have too much caffeine, but a glass of water sounds great."

Reid nodded absentmindedly. "Right...water...," he mumbled awkwardly, heading into the little kitchenette to their left. He opened some cabinets, only to realize that his only glasses were still filthy. He sighed, nothing to it but to use a cup. He made himself some coffee and turned to look at Annabelle while his machine ran. Her posture was relaxed as she leaned back in the couch, but her facial expression told him she was sad, and maybe anxious.

She was staring off to the side, clearly lost in thought, which gave him ample opportunity to study her. Her hands were cradling her belly. She looked to be about eight months along, which was strange. Statistically, most women who were... raped, didn't have another sexual partner for at least another 6 months to a year, but Annabelle didn't seem to fit the pattern. He thought back to her reactions while in captivity, and had to admit that that didn't really fit into any pattern either. Reid just couldn't figure her out. Morgan would have figured her out by now, he thought irritably.

"Your coffee's ready," Annabelle said without looking up.

Maybe not so lost in thought, after all. Reid got his coffee and handed her a cup of water. It had a joke about the 'element of surprise' on the side, he hoped she wouldn't mind.

She smiled as she saw the mug. "That's funny," she commented.

"Ah isn't actually a symbol on the periodic table, though. Au is gold and Ag is-"

"Silver, I know," she interrupted with a smile. "My dad was a chemist."

"Oh, right," he said, sitting down across from her.

An awkward silence settled between them, as neither of them really knew where to start. "I-" "What-?" They started in unison. Annabelle chuckled. "I'll start... As you can see, I'm pregnant..."

Reid looked at her expectantly, thinking she must have a point. But when he didn't reply, she frowned. "How far along do you think I am?" She asked, a little suspiciously.

"About eight months, and judging by the position of the fetus, I'd say it's a boy. Congratulations."

Annabelle looked shocked. In a moment of panic, Reid realized that people didn't always want to know the sex of their baby. What if she hadn't known?

"It's a boy?" She asked, her eyes tearing up.

"I'm sorry," he said, feeling helpless as a tear rolled over her cheek. He was -not- comfortable with this.

"No, no, it's okay!" She assured him as she wiped the tear away, and offered him a watery smile. "I was just too scared to ask the doctor... It's a boy," she said with a breathless laugh. She wiped at her eyes as she composed herself. Reid was more than a little confused himself, but decided to keep quiet. Women were confusing.

"You still haven't worked it out, have you?" She asked quietly, a smile playing around her lips.

Reid frowned. "Worked what out?"

"Spencer... it's yours."

"...What's mine?" He asked warily.

Annabelle laughed. "The baby, you idiot. He's yours."

For a moment, Reid was frozen. He seemed unable to process what she had said, and he was not one for brain lapses.

"But-" he stammered. "What?"

Annabelle sighed. "I only found out about it two months after... it happened. I was getting nauseous every day, losing my balance, getting whiney... I took a pregnancy test, and went to the doctor, and both said the same thing: I'm pregnant."

Reid was in shock, this couldn't happen, it just... couldn't... "Are you sure it's... mine?" He asked breathlessly.

Annabelle nodded. "I hadn't been with anyone for a long while before... we got kidnapped, and I certainly haven't since. Even my own father scared me for a while, let alone a strange man..."

Reid looked away in pain and guilt. He had never wanted to hurt her, and because of him, she was feeling this way, because of him, she was pregnant...

A warm hand on his knee brought him back to the present. Annabelle had leaned forward and was comforting _him_. He should be the one comforting _her_. He covered her hand with his own and offered her a shaky smile. It was the best he could do, considering his circumstances.  
Annabelle took a deep breath and pulled back, cradling her belly again. "My parents wanted me to get an abortion, but I just couldn't. Taking away a life for something that wasn't his fault... -or- his father's," she said with a meaningful look in his direction. "And then when I refused, they wanted me to come live with them in Syracuse, New York." She snorted. "Like I'd give them any more opportunity to run my life and tell me how much more perfect my sister is... But Maryland wasn't... working for me anymore, so I decided to move. I'm half an hour down south, in Fredericksburg now."

Reid frowned. "What about your sister?"

"I adore my sister, but she's a doctor. If I got to see her once a month for lunch, I was lucky."

"What are you going to do now?"

Annabelle sighed softly, running a hand through her long hair. "I've been taking evening classes to get a second degree...but with a baby, that's going to be hard to keep up."

Spencer took a sip of his coffee, unsure of how to reply.

"Spencer, the reason I came here - other than telling you that you're going to have a son - was to give you a chance to be involved in its – _his_ – life."

For the second time that night, Reid froze and was unable to think of a single intelligible thing to say. "Oh," he breathed.

"I understand that you need to think about it." She started to get up. Reid quickly jumped up to give her a hand. "Thank you." Annabelle rummaged around in her purse and eventually produced a card. "This is my number. When you've made your decision, call me," she said, moving towards the door.

Before Reid really realized what was going on, she had closed the door behind her and had left him alone in his apartment once more.

"Reid, what's the matter with you? You've been distracted all day," Morgan commented, pulling Reid from his musings. "Hmm, what?" Reid said distractedly. "It's nothing; I'm fine."

"Are you calculating mathematical equations again?" Prentiss called over from her desk.

"Or pondering the influence of the fall of the Incan empire on today's society?" Morgan joked.

Reid frowned. "Why would-?"

"Figure of speech, genius," Morgan interrupted.

Reid's frown deepened. "Not a very good one..."

"He's back, ladies and gentlemen," Morgan teased. Reid opened his mouth to retort, but Hotch strode in and interrupted them. "We've got a case," he announced. "Conference room, now."

/*/

"I need to see Dr. Spencer Reid, please," Annabelle asked the receptionist at the BAU.

"Just a moment, please," the woman replied, picking up a phone, presumably to call up. Reid hadn't called. It'd been five days, and with her due date approaching, she really needed to know his decision. Annabelle found herself getting annoyed with the FBI agent. It really wasn't that hard of a decision, was it? She thought irritably.

"Ma'am?" the receptionist said, pulling Annabelle out of her musings. "Here's your visitor badge, you can go upstairs now."

"Right, thank you," she answered automatically. Taking a deep breath, she pushed her irritation to the side, it was probably hormones anyway. The elevator ride up was uncomfortable, but at least there were no women there to coo at her. Seriously, she was carrying a baby, but that didn't make her one. A pretty blonde woman was waiting for her when she got out of the elevator. "You must be Annabelle, I'm Jennifer Jareau, I'm a colleague of Spencer's."

Annabelle shook Agent Jareau's outstretched hand, but was interrupted by none other than Spencer Reid. "Annabelle?" he asked, stepping through a glass door. "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't call," she said, shrugging.

Agent Jareau glanced back and forth between them with raised eyebrows. Annabelle couldn't imagine Spencer had told anyone on his team about her or the situation, so the other agent's confusion was understandable.

"I'm sorry, we had a case, I got distracted," Spencer replied, glancing at Agent Jareau nervously. He gently grabbed Annabelle's arm and led her away from the elevators, to an empty conference room. "You didn't have to come here, you could have called."

Annabelle raised an eyebrow. "Okay, first: you never gave me your number, and second: all I do all day is sit at home and watch movies, or go to the library. I was bored."

"Oh," Spencer said. He patted his pockets, and eventually pulled out a business card. "Here," he said.

Annabelle took the card and tucked it away in her purse. "Have you, though?" she asked.

"Have I what?" he asked, confused.

Annabelle rolled her eyes in amusement. "Aren't you supposed to be a genius or something? I meant, have you made a decision yet?"

"But I _am_ a genius, I have an IQ of 187," he said, looking a little petulant.

Annabelle smiled. "Sure you are." She sighed and sat down, her back was killing her. "_Have_ you made a decision?" If she was being perfectly honest with herself, she was hoping he would not let her do this on her own. She wasn't sure if she could.

Reid paused, looking decidedly uncomfortable. "I'm not... I can't be a dad, I don't know how."

"You think I do?" She asked incredulously. "I don't know what I'm doing half the time. I don't know if I'm taking the right vitamins, if I'm moving too much or not enough, or... I can't do this by myself, Spencer," she sniffed, and wiped her eyes angrily. "God! I hate all this crying! Why do I have to cry all the time?!"

"Well, the most common time for mood swings based on hormonal changes occurs between weeks 6 and 10 in the first trimester of pregnancy, and again during the third trimester, according to the American Pregnancy Association. Research published in 1999 found that higher progesterone levels in the final two months of pregnancy correlated with more mood sw…" he trailed off at her glare. "That was rhetorical, wasn't it?"

Annabelle sniffed angrily again. "Yes, Spencer, it was rhetorical."

Spencer winced. "Sorry," he said. "Just ask Hotch and Rossi, I don't always pick up on social cues," he said as he offered her a tissue.

Annabelle took it gratefully. "_I'm_ sorry, I'm such a mess. I'll be perfectly fine all day, and then something stupid will set me off… Hotch and Rossi are your teammates?" she asked.

Spencer nodded. He was about to reply when there was a knock on the door and a handsome black man walked in.

"Reid, Hotch wants us. Who's this?" the man asked curiously.

"I'll be right there. Bye," Spencer replied, ignoring the man's question. Annabelle figured he didn't want to talk to his team about this yet. Not a big surprise, considering the circumstances. She smiled sheepishly at the man as he raised an eyebrow and retreated from the room in silence.

"I am never going to hear the end of this," he muttered under his breath.

"You don't get out much, do you?" she asked with a grin, taking in his demeanor.

He looked up at her, looking surprised. He probably hadn't thought she could hear. He narrowed his eyes uncertainly. "Rhetorical?"

Annabelle laughed and nodded. "Look, you don't need to give me an answer right now. Do you want to meet up for lunch tomorrow?" she asked. "We could go to S&G over on Potomac avenue, I hear they've got good food."

"Uhm… yeah, sure. What time?"

"Noon's fine. I'll see you there," she replied with a smile, and walked out of the conference room. "Text or call if you can't make it, okay?" she called over her shoulder.

Here's to hoping that he wouldn't forget that last bit. At least the diner had free Wi-Fi…

/*/

When Reid walked to his desk, he knew Morgan wasn't going to let this go. He wasn't disappointed. "So, lover boy, who was the girl?" Morgan asked with a grin.

"Girl?" Prentiss asked, walking over. "Reid? What happened?"

Reid didn't get a chance to reply. "He was talking to a pretty brunette," Morgan said, his grin widening.

"A pretty, _pregnant_ girl," JJ added with a soft smile. "It seemed very personal to me."

Prentiss's jaw dropped. "Please don't tell me… Reid isn't capable of that, is he?"

Reid just dropped his head into his hands and groaned.

"Leave him be, we've got a case to solve," Hotch intervened, and made the team go back to their own desks.

"So, a girl, huh?" he asked Reid once they all sat back down. "You're never going to hear the end of this, you know that, right?"

Reid grimaced. "Believe me, that had already occurred to me."

**A/N: Please tell me what you think, I appreciate the feedback!**

**So, review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hi! As promised, chapter 3! I'm halfway done with chapter 6 right now, so I'll keep updating regularly. **

**To answer 'Guest's question: "But if the team rescued reid and Annabelle why don't any of them know who she is?" The team handles dozens of cases every month. Over a period of 8 months, it would be easy to forget one person they came in contact with for maybe 10 minutes.**

**tannerose5 asked me about the unsub. As I said before, I'm keeping that deliberately vague. I can tell you he was caught, and that Annabelle will ask Reid about it in a future chapter (that I haven't written yet...). **

**Which reminds me that I have a question: I need a name for the unsub, and I'm coming up blank, any suggestions?**

**Also, thanks to 'marcallie' and 'Callista252' for pointing out some glaring mistakes!**

**Chapter 3:**

Annabelle thanked whatever deity was out there that the restaurant had turned up their heating to the maximum. It was freezing outside, and it had just started snowing lightly. Add to that the fact that her coat would no longer close over her huge belly, and you had one cranky mother-to-be on your hands. Oh, and she couldn't drink coffee…

She quickly sat down at a corner booth where she could keep an eye on the front door. "Good afternoon, I'm Kaylee, I'll be your waitress today, what can I get for you?" The girl appeared to be in her mid-teens, but Annabelle supposed she must've been older than that. She was blonde and looked like a typical bubbly cheerleader.

"Just a hot chocolate, please, I'll order when my… lunch date gets here," she told

She had been running a little late herself, but from the looks of it, Spencer wasn't going to be on time either. Annabelle relaxed into her booth and rubbed the top of her belly. The baby had been really active these last few days, but she hadn't felt him all day today. In fact, she hadn't felt him since she's talked to Spencer the other day. It would've worried her if she hadn't had this happen before.

The waitress put her cocoa in front of her, and Annabelle sipped it carefully. She would've been happier with a nice cup of coffee, but the doctor had warned her about too much caffeine, so she'd kept it down to one cup a week. It was killing her.

She checked her watch. Spencer was only fifteen minutes late, which wasn't enough to start worrying, but she'd found that when she'd hit the six month mark, she got worried far quicker than usual.

Just as she was about to pick up her phone and call him, a cold gust of wind announced his entry. He glanced around the restaurant for a minute, before spotting her and coming over to sit across from her. "Sorry I'm late, this case we've been working on…"

She held up a hand. "It's okay, I was late too."

Spencer glanced at her half-empty cup of cocoa, but didn't comment. "So, have you been here before?" he asked curiously, picking up the menu.

"No, but I have a friend in D.C. who comes in here from time to time. Apparently, they've got good food for good prices," she replied with a smile.

He smiled back, a little awkwardly, and immersed himself back into the menu. The waitress appeared at their table again. "I'll have a coffee and an omelet with bacon, mushrooms and onion, but no spinach, please," Spencer ordered, hardly looking up from his menu.

Annabelle smiled sheepishly. "I'll have the same, but with a water instead of a coffee, thanks." She turned back to Spencer to say something, but was interrupted.

"You were a high school teacher, right? Did you ever had really big problems with any of them?" he asked. She had a feeling he was asking for a reason, but decided to let it go.

"The school I worked at wasn't very big, but we had our fair share of problems. Never anything too drastic, but sure."

"Like what?"

Annabelle sighed. That was the part about her job she didn't much like. "A few possessions of drugs, some bullying… There was one girl who was cutting herself. I'd glanced it in a bathroom mirror once. When I tried talking to her about it, to help her, she lashed out. She said that I was stalking her, and that following girls into the bathroom was creepy. I was lucky the principal didn't take those accusations to heart, but I still felt so guilty that I couldn't help her…"

"Did you try to find her again?" he asked.

Annabelle kept her eyes on her hot cocoa. "No. If anyone were to find out that I did, those accusations would be sure to surface again, and there were other kids at the school I _could_ help," she explained.

Spencer sat back, processing that as the food was brought to their table. Annabelle bit her lip, debating whether or not to bring it up. "Spencer?" she asked. He looked up, looking a bit confused. His thoughts were obviously elsewhere. "Is everything okay at work?" she asked.

"Yes, everything's…" he trailed off as Annabelle raised an eyebrow. "It's just this case. It's always harder when children are involved…"

"I guess you can't tell me about it, can you?"

He shook his head. "Not while it's an open case."

"Well, then I'm just going to have to take your mind off of it, won't I?" Spencer looked at her warily as she grinned at him. She liked making him squirm, it was funny. He opened his mouth to say something when her phone rang. He raised his eyebrows at the sound of the imperial march. She grimaced. "I'm sorry, I have to take this." She pulled out her phone and quickly picked up, half-turning away from him. "Hi, mom… No, I can't, you know I can't…" She pinched the bridge of her nose. "No, mother, I– What? No! Mom! … You know what, do whatever the hell you want. Bye!" She clenched her teeth and hung up. Sighing in frustration.

Spencer paused for a second. "Your mother's ringtone is Darth Vader's theme music?" he asked quizzically, digging into his food.

Annabelle let out a breathless laugh. "Yeah, I thought it was fitting. If you ever meet her, please don't tell her, she'd kill me," she pleaded, taking a bite herself.

"So you like Star Wars?" he asked, leaning forward a little. Annabelle grinned to herself. He was obviously a geek himself.

"I really like them, but the old trilogy more than the prequels. I do have a soft spot for episode one, though," she responded.

Spencer frowned. "Why? Even putting the scientific arguments aside, there are so many inconsistencies, it just doesn't make sense."

Annabelle grinned wider. "Little Anakin, mostly, also, I love the portrayal of the Naboo, the detailing that went into creating that planet is just something I can appreciate. Never liked Natalie Portman, though, she sounds like a robot all throughout the movie…" she complained.

Spencer chuckled. "Fair enough. What about other sci-fi movies?"

Annabelle held up a hand. "I know what you're trying to ask, and no, I'm not a Trekkie. I've watched a few next gen episodes, but that's about it."

"What? But Star Trek is the best, and has far less scientific inaccuracies!" Spencer cried out, but a small smile betrayed that he didn't really mind after all.

Annabelle laughed. "I can't help it! I just never really got into it! Doctor Who on the other hand is probably my favorite show ever," she responded, hoping she wouldn't look too much like a geek now.

"Old or New?" he asked immediately.

"New, though I've started watching the Old."

"Favorite Doctor?"

"Ten, no doubt about it, though of the old series, I'd have to say four. He's the only one I've seen any episodes of."

"Oh, really? You should watch them in the right order! Companion?"

"Of the new series Rose, though Donna and Rory are close seconds. In the old series, I don't know everyone, but I'd have to say Sarah Jane."

Spencer smiled, and Annabelle noted that it was a nice smile. He usually looked so serious. "Sorry for the interrogation," he said sheepishly.

Annabelle waved a hand. "That's okay, those were important questions. But now it's your turn, who are your favorites?"

"Old Who, the fourth Doctor, and probably Sarah Jane Smith," he replied with a grin.

"Haven't you seen the new series?"

"I have, I just prefer the old one."

Annabelle reached over and put a hand over his. "Please tell me you like David Tennant. If not we can't be seen together in public," she said theatrically.

Spencer chuckled. "I liked him better than Matt Smith."

"Well that's a start, I suppose," she said, taking back her hand. She finished her lunch and tried to catch the last drops of cocoa from her mug. Hey, if she couldn't have caffeine, hot chocolate was the next best thing.

The waitress came by with the bill – jeez, these people worked fast – and Annabelle reached for it, fully intending to pay, but Spencer snatched it up first. She raised her eyebrows, to which he shrugged. She gave in. If he wanted to pay, who was she to argue. She stared out at the empty table to her right. Apparently, chivalry wasn't dead just yet.

They got up and donned their winter coats again, Annabelle resting a hand on her lower back. She shivered when Spencer opened the door. She had almost expected him to say goodbye to her at the door, but he just followed her to her car. She wasn't sure if it was him being courteous, or just a habit. Either way, it was nice.

"Thanks for lunch," she said when they reached her car. She was kind of hoping to say goodbye quickly, it was still snowing lightly, and she was freezing.

"Sure. Do you want to meet up again tomorrow?" he asked in a rush.

Annabelle was surprised, she hadn't expected him to take the initiative. "Uhm, sure, that'd be nice."

/*/

Over the next week, Reid met Annabelle for lunch every day at S&G. It got to the point where their usual waitress, Kaylee, figured out their order. After that first time, Reid always took their signature sandwich, while Annabelle either took an omelet or one of the sandwiches, until she found her favorite.

Annabelle laughed. "Seriously? A prank war?"

"He started it," he replied, smiling despite his words. Reid had found that Annabelle was easy to talk to, it was completely different from the people on the team. He loved them dearly, but they didn't always get him. While Annabelle didn't always understand the scientific jargon he tended to use, and didn't have a background in any of his areas of expertise, she was a great listener. And she laughed at his jokes.

"Okay, so let me see if I got this right: Aaron Hotchner is the team leader, Jennifer Jareau, the one I met, is the communications liaison, Penelope… something…"

"Garcia," Reid supplied.

"Right, Garcia, is the crazy tech girl, Derek Morgan is the muscles, but I'm never to tell him this, and Emily Prentiss and David Rossi are the final members of the team."

"Correct. Ten points to Gryffindor," he joked.

Annabelle grinned. "I think I'm more of a Hufflepuff, but thank you." She gave him a mock toast. She seemed to be in good spirits today, which was a nice change from the past two days. She'd been very tired and moody, but given that she was now 36 weeks along, that was no surprise.

Suddenly, the smile dropped from her face, and she gasped. "Annabelle?" he asked worriedly. She quickly grabbed his hand and held it against her belly, just below her breasts. Reid knew he was blushing furiously.

"Can you feel that?" she asked, wonder shining through her eyes.

Reid frowned, and was about to reply that he couldn't when… he felt a sharp push against his hand. He knew from when JJ was pregnant that this was the baby kicking, but while it had freaked him out back then, he felt… wonder at the touch now.

He chuckled breathlessly. "He's so strong…"

Annabelle was beaming. "He hasn't been moving a whole lot lately, but when he does, it's quite forceful. I'm just glad it wasn't my bladder."

Intelligently, Reid knew that pregnant women were considered more beautiful because they were carrying offspring, and it awakened a protective instinct in males, but he never figured it would apply to _him_. He had to admit, though, that even objectively speaking, she was pretty. Her face was symmetrical, and her brown eyes were very dark, which gave the impression that her pupils were dilated. She wasn't beautiful like JJ or even Prentiss, but she was attractive nonetheless.

"What are you staring at?" she asked with a smile, still holding his hand in place.

Reid opened his mouth, but no sound came out. As he reclaimed his hand, he finally managed to utter something. "Nothing, just thinking."

"Do you ever not do that?" she asked curiously, cocking her head to the side. It was a habit of hers he'd picked up on fairly quickly.

"Do what?"

"Think."

He frowned, looked at his cup of coffee. "I don't think I can, even if I tried."

Annabelle grabbed her own mug of hot chocolate. "I try to, sometimes. I'll be sitting somewhere, maybe with a book forgotten on my lap, and I'll just stare into the distance, enjoying the sun… It's peaceful." She shrugged.

Reid let that sink in for a moment. "I wish I knew what that feels like."

"It's not that hard, you just need to be secure enough not to wander off again. I used to be able to do it with my dad. I'd sit in his lap and try to think of nothing. I couldn't really do it back then, but at least I tried."

"Sounds nice."

She smiled up at him. "It is."

They sat in silence like that for a few more minutes, before Annabelle paid the check (they were taking turns now) and they got up to leave.

"Same time tomorrow?" he asked, opening the door for her.

"Of course," she replied, grinning.

/*/

Reid walked back to the BAU. He had an hour lunch break, and he spent 30 minutes of it in the restaurant with Annabelle. He was in a good mood, which was largely due to his unborn son and Annabelle. Something about feeling his son kick was… awe-inspiring. He'd never thought he'd be a father, never even given it much thought, but here he was.

His musings were interrupted by the ringing of his phone. He checked the caller-id. Annabelle. Dread settled in his stomach as he quickly answered the phone.

"Spencer! The baby, it's coming!"

**A/N: I know, I know, I'm completely evil for ending this with a cliffhanger and refusing to update until next week *grins mischievously***

**Any guesses as to the name? Those who get it right might get a sneak peak of the next chapter!**

**Also; this chapter is dedicated to my best friend MaryEvH (who writes amazing Les Mis fanfics, btw) because she's the most wonderful person in the world, and because I have to miss her far too often. Oh, and she helped me write this and convinced me to put it up here, so you have her to thank for that.**

**See you next week!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:**** Hi! Yes, I am updating early, and not because I'm caving! I'm updating because I'll be at camp this Saturday and will be too preoccupied by loud 6-year-olds to update. Also, no WiFi... That said, I figured you'd rather I updated a little early instead of a little late. Next update will be as planned, on Saturday 26 July. **

**As I've decided to re-start dedicating every chapter to a person who's important to me, I'll dedicate this one to Hanne, my Belgian best friend (because there really has to be made a distinction). We're going to have so much fun this week, and you're just plain awesome!**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**Chapter 4:**

He would've liked to say that he didn't panic, and, he supposed, outwardly, he didn't. "Where are you?" he asked immediately, hurrying along to the Bureau.

"I don't know, somewhere on Russel Road. Oh, God, Spencer, I can't do this by myself, I can't, I can't…"

"Stay calm, and stay there," he ordered, the FBI agent in him taking over. "I'm on my way."

He hung up the phone and ran up the stairs to the main hall. He spotted JJ and Emily as they were walking back from the cafeteria. "JJ!" he shouted, running up to her.

"Spence? What is it? Is something wrong?"

"I need a favour, right now."

She glanced at Emily, and Reid grew impatient. It was below freezing outside, and Annabelle was going into labour by herself. "Okay, sure, what do you need?" she asked.

Reid just grabbed her wrist, and started dragging her to the parking garage. "Spence, where are we going?"

"You need to drive me to Russel Road, right now, it's urgent."

JJ pulled her hand back and stopped. "No, not before you tell me what's going on."

Reid growled in frustration, he didn't have time for this! "I'll tell you in the car, now move!" he shouted, ignoring the looks of passers-by. JJ hesitated for a second, before jogging ahead of him to the garage.

Reid wasn't looking forward to having to explain all of this to the rest of the team, let alone to JJ. He knew he could trust her, though. She pulled out of the garage and sped towards Russel. "Now what the hell is going on?" she demanded.

"Remember that girl, Annabelle?" he asked. JJ nodded, keeping her eyes on the road. And then Reid told her everything, from the beginning. The kidnapping, what he had to do, and then how she showed up at his apartment.

"It's freezing outside, and she's all by herself, we need to hurry," he said, but she was already at Dunlap Circle.

"Where exactly is she?" It was the first time she'd spoken since Reid had explained, and it was to her credit that she didn't ask any more questions.

"I don't know, somewhere along this road," he replied, pulling out his phone and calling her again. "Annabelle? Where are you? We just pulled onto Russel Road."

Annabelle was breathing harshly. "I'm a few yards out. Who's we?"

"JJ's driving me, she knows."

"Everything?" she asked incredulously, but before he could answer, she groaned in pain. "Spence, please hurry," she whimpered softly. "I'm scared."

"I will," he replied, just as JJ said: "There!" She pointed to a car by the side of the road, the lights on, and a single woman in the front seat. Reid snapped his phone shut and unbuckled his seatbelt.

JJ had barely come to a stop when Reid jumped out of the car and ran to the other car. As he opened the door, another contraction hit, and she managed to grab his hand and nearly squeeze it to death. "You're here," she whispered as the pain subsided.

"Of course I'm here," he said. He leaned over and supported her back. "Let's get you over to the passenger side." He was about to call for JJ, but she was already at the other side of the car, moving to help Annabelle slide over.

"I'll drive her, you go back to the Bureau. Tell Hotch I'm taking a sick day," he said once Annabelle was in place. He slid into the driver's side, and had to adjust the seat. Annabelle was shorter than he'd realized.

JJ didn't get a chance to reply, as Reid drove away. "Hang on, it's only a 12 minute drive, and I can make it 10," he assured her.

"I'm scared , Spence," she whispered, breathing hard and gripping the arm rests in a death grip. "I can't do this."

"Yes, you can," Reid assured her, pushing the gas pedal down a little further. He could afford a fine if they got one, but she couldn't afford having her first child outside a hospital.

Annabelle screamed as another, stronger, contraction hit. Reid winced at the volume. For a woman of her size, she certainly had quite a strong diaphragm. Reid worried, her contractions were far closer together than he would think. The average pregnancy ended in a 10 hour labor, but Annabelle seemed about ready to give birth in maybe an hour. "How long have you been having contractions?" he asked.

"A while, I don't know, I wasn't paying attention."

Reid frowned. "How did you not notice?" She was screaming in pain now, she must've felt it earlier.

"I thought they were Braxton-Hicks contractions, okay? It's three weeks early! It's not supposed to come out yet!" she screamed.

Again, Reid winced at the volume of her voice. "We're almost there," he said, hoping to comfort her with the information.

"Distract me," Annabelle pleaded after a few minutes of silence, her eyes screwed shut. Reid was fairly sure she wasn't having another contraction, but it still couldn't be comfortable.

"Uhm… did you know that temperature at the core of the Sun is approximately 15 million degrees Celsius? That is about 27 million degrees Fahrenheit. The coolest part of the Sun is nearly 6,000 degrees Celsius, which is almost 11,000 degrees Fahrenheit. And the highest temperature recorded on Earth is 56.7 degrees Celsius. That's 134 degrees Fahrenheit."

Annabelle looked at him incredulously. "_That's_ how you distract me?! Why would I care about the temperature of the sun?! I'm about to push out a little person, and _that's_ how you distract me?"

"I'm sorry!" Reid apologised, hoping they'd get to the hospital soon. A glance at the clock told him it'd be another 3 minutes. He pushed the pedal down some more.

Annabelle groaned as another contraction hit. "Oh God, it hurts."

"I'm sorry, just hold on, we're almost there," Reid said, the hospital only a few blocks away now.

"Just tell me something about yourself, okay?" she asked, completely out of breath.

"What do you want to know?"

"Just talk, for God's sakes!"

"Uhm… My father's name is William, my mother is Diana. My dad left when I was ten. Uhm… I have three Ph.D.'s in mathematics, chemistry and engineering, and I have two BA's in psychology and sociology. I have an eidetic memory. What else?" he asked, slightly panicked.

"Pets?" she asked, a little desperately.

"Never had any, my mother's allergic and I don't think they're sanitary," he replied, finally pulling into the hospital's parking lot. NextCare Urgent Care was a small facility, but they had been known to do deliveries, so they had the equipment necessary in their ER.

"I need some help!" he shouted to some nurses who were standing outside taking a smoke break. He then ran to the passenger door, not waiting to see what they'd do, to help Annabelle out of the car.

Apparently, when a woman was this close to giving birth, she didn't need to sign in, she was just rushed off to the nearest room that had the equipment to take care of newborn babies. Reid had planned on staying in a waiting room until the baby was born, but when he slowed down, Annabelle grabbed his wrist. "Please don't let me do this alone. I need you," she pleaded.

He hesitated, while the doctor and nurses glared at him. "Okay," he said eventually, and followed them into the delivery room.

/*/

JJ didn't know what to think. She'd heard Spence's entire story, and it was still a lot to wrap her head around. She had no idea he'd had to do that, never mind that poor woman. And she was pregnant… For the life of her, she couldn't imagine Spence as a father, he was still so much of a kid himself.

When she'd come back into the BAU, Hotch had been annoyed that she was late, but switched right to concerned when she said she had to take Reid home because he was sick. She told him he wouldn't be coming in for the next few days. Emily, on the other hand, hadn't been so easily fooled.

"I saw him, he didn't look sick, he looked worried and in a hurry. What aren't you telling me, JJ?" Emily had asked after she'd cornered JJ.

JJ bit her lip. "You'll have to ask Spence, I don't know the whole story either, and even if I did, it's not mine to tell." She hated lying to her team, but in this case, she understood the necessity. _She_ hardly knew how to deal with this, the others would take it much harder. She wondered briefly how Spence managed to wrap his head around it, given his personality.

She was sitting at her desk, working on some paperwork and reading over some files sent to her when she got a text.

_Healthy baby boy. Come visit? NextCare Urgent Care_

She smiled. He was still Spencer Reid, after all.

_Of course, tonight?_

/*/

"Just one more, ma'am," the doctor told Annabelle. Reid could tell she was almost at the end of her rope; her brow beaded with sweat, and her muscles shaking in exhaustion. He faithfully held her hand, though he felt completely uncomfortable being in this room, let alone witness a birth.

That all changed when he heard a baby cry. The sound was rated as the most annoying sound worldwide, but in that instant, Reid didn't agree. The pain in his hand faded to the background, as did everything else, as he glimpsed the bloody, slimy baby. He had a son!

The nurses went to clean the baby, and Reid tried to crane his neck to watch him, if for no other reason than to distract his from the afterbirth he knew was coming.

He still held Annabelle's hand, so when she squeezed it lightly after that was done, he turned to look at her. She was still breathing heavily, she was sweaty, and had bruises under her eyes, but she still smiled. "We did it," she whispered.

He couldn't help but return the smile. "We did."

The nurses came back into the room, holding a little bundle. Reid quickly stepped back and let Annabelle's hand go, so that she could hold her newborn son. "Hi," she whispered to the whimpering baby. She cooed at it for a few more minutes, while the nurses cleaned up the room. Finally, she looked up at Reid. "Spencer, meet your son: Matthew Christopher Reid," she said, and gestured for him to hold the baby.

Reid remembered holding Henry when he was a baby, but this was different, as soon as he got a good look at his child's face, he was lost. This was _his_ child, his _son_. A voice in the back of his mind told him that the only reason he was feeling this way was because evolution had programmed him this way, but, for once, he shoved it further back and ignored it.

This was his son.

**A/N:**** Please leave a review, the feedback helps me write this story and make it more believable. Let me know what you think of the name!**

**So here's a huge shout-out to all those who have reviewed so far! marcallie, MaryEvH, tannerose5, moonlit doe, omgnotagain, KristinaLynn615 and Guest. Y'all are awesome! **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I honestly think you guys will love this chapter, it was so much fun to write! I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I will.**

**This chapter is dedicated to my best American friend MaryEvH, who is currently one of the most important people in my life and also the reason this fanfic got published (and written) in the first place. She's one of the most amazing people I've ever met and I love her to bits. This one's for you, love!**

**Chapter 5:**

JJ clutched the stuffed bunny she'd bought, pausing outside the door behind which she knew Spence and his… and Annabelle were. It was still hard for her to grasp the fact that Reid was a father now. She took a deep breath and stepped inside.

Annabelle was sitting up in the bed, the baby in her arms, while Spence dozed in the chair next to them, leaning on a hand. As soon as she walked in, Annabelle looked up. She'd been nursing the baby, which was a little strange, considering the history between her and Spence. She must've felt comfortable.

Annabelle offered a tired smile. "Spence said you were coming. Hello Agent Jareau," she whispered, unconsciously glancing at Spence. JJ mentally filed that away.

She smiled back. "Please, call me JJ," she said, keeping her voice down as well. "How's the little one?"

"Extremely hungry," Annabelle chuckled, gesturing to the drinking baby.

JJ went to stand next to the bed to get a better look. "He's adorable. How much does he weigh?" He looked a little small, but then, Spence had said that he was early.

"Thanks, he's 6.2 pounds and 19 inches long. The doctor said he needs to gain a little bit of weight, but he's on the right track, what with the amount of milk he's drunk."

JJ nodded. "It's normal for babies to lose a little weight in the first few weeks. He'll gain some more fat after that, don't worry."

Annabelle smiled, looking down at the baby. "I don't think I could ever not worry, he's so tiny!"

"I know the feeling," JJ responded, sitting down in the remaining chair. "When Henry was born, I worried about every little thing, thinking I was doing everything wrong… New mom paranoia, I suppose. It gets better."

Annabelle looked up, looking grateful. "Oh good, I thought I was the only one… I feel so underprepared…"

JJ snorted. "Trust me, you're far from the only one. It's something every new mother goes through with her first baby."

Annabelle was about to reply, when Spence's head slipped off of his hand, and he jolted awake. "I must've dozed off," he said, rubbing his eyes.

"It's okay, you looked so tired, I figured I'd let you sleep," Annabelle replied. She moved the baby to the other side¸ and he quickly latched back on.

JJ had to smile when Spence blushed at the sight and averted his eyes. Coincidentally, this made him realize she was in the room. "JJ!" he exclaimed with a smile, getting up from his chair and coming over to give her a hug.

"I brought this, I wasn't sure if the baby had gotten a present yet," JJ said as she pulled back and held out the bunny.

Spence smiled widely as he took the stuffed animal. "You know, bunnies and stuffed squids are good choices for a baby, because they have parts that can easily be grabbed. It's good for developing fine motor skills."

"Spence," JJ interrupted. "Just say thank you."

Annabelle laughed and Spence blushed. "Thanks JJ," he said.

Annabelle leaned over and poked Spence. "Ask her."

"Ask me what?" JJ asked, confused, as Spence seemed to become uncomfortable again. Before he could speak, though, the baby had finished feeding, apparently, and Annabelle handed him over to Spence so she could get dressed properly again. JJ thought that Spence might actually get a permanent blush from all this.

"Well," he said, looking perfectly natural holding the newborn, in a way he wasn't when he'd held Henry. "We – Annabelle and I – talked about it, and we agreed that… We'd like… Do you want to become Matthew's godmother?" he stuttered.

JJ was shocked. "Me?" she asked almost incredulously. When he'd asked her to come visit, this certainly hadn't been something she'd been expecting.

Spence smiled proudly. "I couldn't think of anyone better."

Her throat closed up a little and she had to blink a few times to avoid some waterworks. "Yes, of course I'll become his godmother. Matthew, was it?"

Annabelle beamed from her spot on the bed. "Matthew Christopher Reid. Christopher for my father, Chris."

JJ smiled right back. "It's a beautiful name," she said. "Can I hold him?"

Spence looked over at Annabelle, who nodded, before handing over the baby. Their interaction towards each other was interesting, sometimes seemingly uncertain, other times looking like they'd been friends or partners for years. Her attention shifted as the baby – Matthew – was handed to her, though. He really was a beautiful boy, despite his small stature.

Spence sat down on the edge of the bed, his eyes solely on his son. Annabelle wasn't any different. JJ smiled to herself. Yes, they'd make it just fine…

/*/

_Three days later_

"Must've been some…whatever you had for you to stay away for three days. What happened?" Morgan asked when Reid walked back into the Bureau three days later.

"Nothing much," he said, and walked over to the whiteboard, studying the information on it. "How much progress have we made on this profile?"

"Not as much as we should have, this guy is elusive," Prentiss said, walking over to stand beside him. "We missed you around here." The question was obvious in her voice. Reid chose to ignore it.

"Have you checked out other sexual assault cases in the surrounding states? This unsub has most likely experimented before," Reid suggested, keeping his eyes on the pictures in front of him. He was well aware that everyone was staring at him, but he was hoping that if he ignored it, they would stop.

"We got a call, someone just reported their child missing," Hotch announced as he walked out of his office and into the main area.

"How long has the child been gone?" Reid asked.

"A few minutes, he was taken from the park."

Reid frowned. "Then how do they know he's been abducted? He could've just wandered off."

Hotch gave him a look. "A parent knows."

"_I _don't," he retorted with a frown. This whole sixth sense that some people claimed to have concerning their children, was a mystery to him, it couldn't possibly be true.

"Well, you wouldn't, you're not a parent," Morgan responded, getting up from his desk chair and moving to the doors.

"Yes I am," Reid said before he realized what he was doing.

From her desk JJ all but face-palmed. "Not the way to tell them, Spence," she muttered under her breath.

The team just stopped and stared. "I'm sorry, what?" Prentiss asked incredulously.

"I have a son," Reid admitted in a quiet voice.

"_You_ have a son?" Morgan asked, shock and confusion written on his face. Right at that moment, Rossi walked in.

"Did I miss something?"

"He's three days old, but it's hardly relevant. Didn't we have an abducted child to find?" Reid said, trying to change the subject.

"Reid is right," Hotch said. "We'll talk about this later. Rossi and Morgan go talk to the parents, Reid and Prentiss, go to the last abduction site, see if you find something the local PD overlooked. JJ, you're with me."

Everyone moved at the order, but everyone also kept shooting Reid funny looks on the elevator ride down. He had been tempted to take the stairs, but that would have only taken up more time, and it would have been very childish. He was a grown man, he could survive a few stares. Probably.

/*/

"So, you knew, didn't you?" Hotch asked JJ once they were both seated in the SUV. He didn't look at her, keeping his eyes on the road, but JJ had a feeling he could read her completely.

She nodded. "I'm his godmother, but I only found out about Annabelle on the day she gave birth."

For the longest time, Hotch didn't say anything. JJ had no clue what he was thinking.

"What's the baby's name?" he asked suddenly, pulling up at the local police station.

She looked at him in surprise, not having expected him to let go so easily. "Matthew Christopher Reid," she replied quietly.

Hotch took the keys out of the ignition, surveying the scene in front of him. "Fitting," he murmured, getting out of the car. Hotch was hard to read, but she'd seen the small smile on his face. Matthew would have no trouble winning over this team, JJ thought.

/*/

Annabelle had just been released from the hospital, and had told Spence to go to work. What she found when she came home had _not_ been what she had been expecting.

"_Mom?_" she exclaimed after she'd opened the door to her apartment. "Dad?" Her parents were sitting calmly on the couch, her mother sipping tea. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Her dad rose from the couch. "Sweetie," he said, a broad grin on his face.

"You just had a child," her mom said with a slight hint of condemnation.

"Yeah, I noticed," Annabelle snapped. "That still doesn't explain what you're doing here." From his place in the car seat, Matthew started to cry. Annabelle groaned; he'd just settled down on the way home from the hospital… "Shh," she cooed, putting the carrier down and picking him up. She ignored her parents and went to her room to feed him. Breastfeeding in front of Spence and JJ was one thing, but it would be completely uncomfortable with her parents in the room.

"Annabelle?" her mother called from the other side of the door. Annabelle was tempted to lock her room and pretend they weren't there, but she figured that was childish.

"What, mom? I'm feeding my son," she snapped back. Matthew whimpered, and she felt a stab of guilt. "I'm sorry, baby," she whispered, quietly enough that her mother wouldn't hear. "Your grandma can be a piece of work sometimes…"

"I just want to talk to you," her mother said, sounding a little annoyed.

"More like order me around," Annabelle muttered under her breath. "It's going to have to wait!" she shouted back. An irritated sigh sounded from the other side of the door, but Annabelle ignored it, her son needed her.

Sometimes she wished her life was just about her and Matthew, but it wasn't. She had to think about other people too. She briefly wondered how her parents had found out that she'd given birth early, because _she_ hadn't called them. She'd left a voice message with her sister Lizzie, but she hadn't replied, so she doubted Lizzie would have told her parents…she wasn't particularly close to them either.

When Matthew had nursed on both sides, she went ahead and burped him before going back out to the front of her apartment. "That took you long enough," her mother muttered snidely.

"Yes, well, babies need to eat. You raised two daughters; you should know that," Annabelle said, still somewhat annoyed. "Why are you here?"

"Well, we get a text from you out of nowhere that you've had a baby boy, what did you expect we'd do?" Her mom replied condescendingly from her place on the couch.

Annabelle frowned and reached for her phone. She sure as hell hadn't sent a message, so what the hell were they talking about. She scrolled through her conversations, and there it was. A text to her father's phone saying: _It's a healthy baby boy!_

She sighed. "Spence…"

"I'm sorry?" her mother asked. Annabelle glanced at her and at her father. They thought Matthew was the product of a one-night stand, which is what Spence would tell his team and what Annabelle's friends thought, but they still wouldn't be happy that she'd contacted him.

"I didn't send that text, Spencer did,"

"Who?" her father asked curiously. He'd been standing by the bookcase, studying the titles, and – as usual – letting mom do all the talking.

"Spencer Reid, Matthew's father."

"So you named him Matthew? That's a biblical name, since when have you been religious?" her mother snapped.

"I just liked it, okay, it fits his last name," Annabelle said back, trying very hard to keep from snapping or yelling as she put Matthew in his crib.

"Matthew Crawford? How does that fit?"

"It's Reid, mom, not Crawford," Annabelle said before she could stop herself. _'Oh crap.'_

It was quiet in the apartment for almost a full minute, except for the baby's quiet breathing. "You gave your son the name of a man you only met once?" her mother asked in a deceptively calm voice.

"I named him after his father," she countered, standing her ground. "Spence is a nice guy, and he's a doctor, it's not like he's a criminal."

Annabelle's mother huffed. "That doesn't make any difference, he still left you after one night and never bothered to check up on you again. Not every doctor is like your sister."

Annabelle rolled her eyes. "Yes, and fortunately, not every mother is like you. I want you to leave," she said decisively.

Her mother stared at her, open-mouthed. "Are you–"

"I'm dead serious, mom. I want you to go, now."

Her mother glared at her for another minute, before turning to her husband. "Chris, we're leaving. It seems we're not wanted."

"Mariah–" Annabelle's father started, but a quick look from his wife shut him up. She stepped through the door and left without another word.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," her father said, heading towards the door as well.

"Daddy, wait," Annabelle said, putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "My son, his name… it's Matthew Christopher Reid."

Eyes tearing up, her dad lifted a hand to cover his mouth. "I love you, daddy," she said, hugging him. "I just wish mom would understand."

Her dad pulled back. "She'll come around eventually," he assured her. He glanced at the bedroom door, seemingly torn between leaving and seeing his grandson again.

Annabelle smiled and went to get Matthew. He was sleeping, but only stirred a little when she picked him up. "Want to meet your grandson?" she asked her dad. He just nodded tearfully. Matthew looked even smaller in her dad's arms. She herself wasn't too tall, but her dad was almost 6 ft 3. Matthew instinctively grabbed for something to hold - in this case, her father's tie.

Annabelle laughed. "He likes you… He takes after Spence, he's so curious about everything…"

"You've stayed in touch then?" her dad asked, whispering so as not to wake the baby.

She smiled. "Just these last two weeks. We've been having lunch together nearly every day, and he brought me to the hospital when it was time."

Her dad smiled, and half-hugged her, being careful of the baby. "Just be careful, sweetie, I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

"I'm always careful, daddy," she replied as she took Matthew from his arms. "You should go, before mom thinks I'm kidnapping you."

He smiled one last time at his daughter and grandson and left, shutting the door quietly behind him.

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed that, please review and tell me what you think! (btw, noticed anything that's changed?)**

**Thanks and 'til next week!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I know, I know, it's a day late, but I had trouble with the ending of this chapter, and then the internet went down... I'm sorry. But at least now you've got a nice, long chapter to read! Also, I've been posting this on AO3 as well!**

**This chapter is dedicated to a relatively new friend of mine, with whom I had a Doctor Who day today. We watched all of the 9th Doctor in one day! So thanks Liz, you're amazing!**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 6:**

For the past two weeks, his team had been pestering him about meeting Annabelle and his son. As far as he knew, only Hotch and JJ knew their names, so he was safe from Garcia using her technological prowess to track them down. All the same, he knew he couldn't stall them forever.

He wanted to keep Matthew to himself for a little while longer. It almost felt selfish, but Reid didn't care. After all, he had every right to keep his own child to himself, didn't he?

"Reid," Hotch's stern voice jerked him out of his thoughts. "Did you hear me?"

"Hmm? Sorry sir," Reid muttered, rubbing his eyes.

"Go with Rossi," Hotch said. "We've got another crime scene."

Reid nodded and followed the older agent out of the Billings police station. Montana was a little too far from home for Reid's tastes, and _seriously_ cold. It was winter, and Reid could barely feel his fingers when he stepped outside. Never mind that it was two hours earlier here than it was in Virginia. Garcia had set him up with a skype account and had taught him how to use it, grinning all the way through the lesson, of course. At least she'd promised not to tell Morgan… He'd skyped with Annabelle the day before, to see Matthew, but it wasn't exactly the same. He also hated asking Garcia for one of her laptops because of the teasing she put him through.

"Are you okay, kid?" Rossi asked, getting into the SUV.

Reid sighed, getting into his side of the car. He knew his team was watching him a lot closer than usual. "I'm fine, just tired."

"Being a parent isn't easy, is it?" Rossi said in a sympathetic voice. Reid just hummed, recognising this for what it was: a way to make him open up. He hadn't actually told him team anything. Hotch and JJ knew his son's name, but that was about it. No one else knew anything, and they'd been trying to drag it out of him for weeks. All he really wanted was to go back to Virginia.

"Come on, kid, you're going to have to talk to us about this sooner or later, or Garcia and Morgan will just team up and pay that girl of yours a visit," Rossi warned amicably.

Reid groaned at the thought, letting his head fall into his hands. "You'll meet them eventually, just… not yet."

Rossi just nodded, keeping his eyes on the road. "I'm just saying… you know how impatient Garcia can be, especially when it comes to babies."

"I know… trust me, I know," Reid murmured, watching the scenery pass by outside the window. He was just hoping for a little more time…

/*/

"Good job everyone," Hotch congratulated as they walked into the Bureau. "I know it's early, but go home and get some sleep, I don't need you until 9 am tomorrow."

"Great, I could use some sleep," Rossi commented, already turning towards the elevators.

"Hang on just a moment," Morgan said, calling his colleague back. "I've got an announcement to make." Hotch raised his eyebrows, but didn't comment, as everyone else just stared in curiosity. "We all know about Reid's little secret, and how he doesn't want to talk to us about it."

Reid felt dread pooling in the pit of his stomach. Oh God, what'd he do?

"Well," Morgan started, but before he could answer, the elevator doors opened and someone Reid absolutely hadn't been expecting stepped out.

"Annabelle?" Reid asked incredulously, basically running over. She was carrying Matthew and had a diaper bag slung over her shoulder. "What are you doing here."

"What do you mean, you sent me a text," she said, pulling out her phone and showing it to him. Reid recognised that phrasing. Morgan. He closed his eyes in pain, there was no stopping it now. "You didn't send it, did you?" Reid shook his head. "Well, serves you right for texting my parents behind _my_ back."

"Hi Annabelle," JJ said with a smile, coming over. The two women embraced while Reid dreaded her meeting the rest of his team, but it was too late, as Garcia had also come over and the rest had just followed her.

Reid took the baby from Annabelle and held him carefully in his arms. He was still a little unsure when holding the infant, but his confidence was growing. "Hey, little guy, did you miss me?" he cooed.

For a little while, he only had eyes for his son, as he swayed gently to get the infant to stop squirming, but when he looked up, he realized that every eye in the room was on him, complete with matching raised eyebrows (Hotch) and a dropped jaw (Garcia). He blushed and shifted uncomfortably.

"Everyone," JJ said, calling the attention to her, "meet Matthew Christopher Reid."

Garcia let out a high pitched squeal, while Morgan just frowned. They were all quiet for a while until Rossi broke the ice. "Well, that's a summa cum laude name if ever I heard one."

Prentiss chuckled and stepped forward. "May I?" she asked, holding out her arms for the infant. Reid was tempted to say no, but figured no one would ever let him live that down, and, after a glance at Annabelle, handed his son over.

Garcia quickly joined her, while Morgan came to stand by Reid. "He's a handsome kid, Reid, you should be proud," he teased.

When Reid glanced back at Annabelle, she looked up and smiled encouragingly from where she stood next to JJ. Hotch had been standing a little apart from all the rest, but now came to stand next to Rossi, talking to him quietly. Reid sighed. "I know, I just… I wanted to keep him to myself a little while longer," he told Morgan, keeping his eyes on his son.

Annabelle took hold of the baby again. "We should go, are you coming, Spence?" she asked as she leaned down to get the diaper bag from where she'd let put it on the ground. Hotch stepped forward to help her, but Annabelle turned away when he tried to hand it to her. "Can you get that, Spence?" she asked.

Reid frowned, but took the bag from Hotch. He filed that reaction away in his mind, and told himself he'd go over it later. They got into the elevator, and – though it looked like Garcia was tempted to come with them just so she could keep cooing at the baby – he left his team in the hall. They were probably analysing this already.

Great.

/*/

They walked back to the car in an amicable silence, Reid carrying the diaper bag and Annabelle carrying Matthew. "So, that was your team… They're…"

"Enthusiastic?" he suggested, thinking of Garcia's reaction.

Annabelle smiled. "That's one way to describe them, I suppose," she replied as she put Matthew into his car seat.

Reid smiled to himself. His team was like his family, and he really cared about their opinion. He hoped they'd liked Annabelle. "They're not usually like that," he said casually, getting into the car as well. "They were just surprised."

"Can you blame them?" Annabelle asked with a grin. "You did drop a bit of a bombshell on them with this."

Reid looked mildly affronted. "Technically, Morgan dropped that bombshell."

Annabelle laughed. "Whatever you say, Spence."

They rode in silence for a little while, until something occurred to Reid. "You called me Spence," he said, frowning at her.

Annabelle half-turned in her seat, careful to keep her eyes on the road, while still stealing a glance at him. "Well… you're the father of my child."

"You've only called me that since Matthew was born," he countered mildly.

Annabelle stared at the road for a minute. "Should I not call you that?" she asked quietly.

Reid studied her body language. She seemed relaxed, but her hands gripped the wheel a little too tightly. He understood that it meant that she was tense, but he didn't understand the cause for it. "No, it's okay. Almost no one calls me that."

"Almost?"

Reid smiled. "JJ was the first person to ever call me that."

"I like her, she's nice." As she glanced over, she caught his eye. Slowly, a grin spread over her face, mirrored by the one on his. As she returned her gaze to the road, a soft laugh escaped her.

The rest of the ride was spent in amiable silence. When they got to her apartment, she told Reid to get the baby and the diaper bag while she opened the door. "Do you want anything to drink before we get started?" she asked, taking Matthew from him.

"No, I'm okay," he replied, following her into the bedroom to the changing table. He got a diaper out of the bag and left it for her to put it on the baby.

Moving back into the living room while Annabelle got Matthew ready for bed, he set up the TV for their movie night. He'd done this for the past few days, and had finally gotten the hang of Annabelle's system. They were watching the new Star Trek movie, at Annabelle's behest, though he was sure they could never trump the old movies.

"All set?" Annabelle asked when she came out of the bedroom. Reid had already gotten the popcorn out of the microwave and was just setting it on the table.

"All systems are go," he joked.

"Alright, Mr. Sulu," she said, playing along. "Take her away!" She snuggled down onto the couch, taking a blanket and wrapping it around her shoulders.

"It's not that cold," he commented as he sat down on the other end.

"No," she agreed with a grin, "but it's a lot more comfy like this." She pulled her legs up onto the couch and leaned down against the armrest. Reid just shrugged and played the movie.

Annabelle and him kept commenting on various scenes, but it was obvious she was tired. She nodded off about halfway through the movie, and stretched out. One of her feet ended up on Reid's lap, but he was too afraid of waking her to move it. He remained where he was until the end credits rolled across the screen. He'd only just turned the TV off when he heard a soft whimpering coming from the bedroom.

Glancing at Annabelle, he decided that she could probably do with some sleep, got up, and went into the bedroom. Matthew lay in his crib, still asleep, but fussing. Reid gently picked the infant up and cradled him in his arms. A look into the crib revealed the reason of Matthew's discomfort. He'd somehow ended up lying on top of his pacifier, and it had been uncomfortable enough to disrupt his sleep.

"It's okay," he whispered to the tiny child, fishing the offending object out of the crib. He made soothing noises as Matthew settled back into a deeper sleep in his arms. Reid stared at the baby in wonder. How could such a small creature mean so much? He'd never felt like this before. His godson Henry meant a lot to him, too, but Matthew… He couldn't even describe it.

"It suits you." A whisper from behind him interrupted his thoughts.

Turning, he saw Annabelle leaning against the doorframe, looking sleepy, but with a soft smile on her face. She looked… pretty, he thought. Then, he mentally chastised himself. He had no right to think of her like that, not after everything he'd put her through. "What do you mean?" he asked, not letting his thoughts show on his face.

Her smile broadened. "Being a father, it suits you."

Reid didn't really know what to say to that. "Thanks?" he replied, a little uncertainly, before turning back and putting Matthew back in his crib, the pacifier now safely in the baby's mouth.

He followed Annabelle back into the living room and picked up his jacket. "I should go home, it's going to be an early day tomorrow."

"Stay," she said, stepping towards him. The gesture confused him, and it must've shown on his face, because she went on. "Stay here tonight."

**A/N: Tell me what you think! Also, big thanks to all of you reviewers! I've gotten so much feedback on this, and it really warms my heart that you're all making the time to tell me what you thought of the chapter. Thanks a bunch!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I know, I know! I'm soooo sorry! I know I promised to update Saturday, but with work and family visits, things got a bit hectic (also, this site isn't very conducive to writing). I've only just finished this chapter, so don't shoot me if I don't finish chapter 8 by Saturday, I don't think I could write 2000 words (that aren't awful) in just 3 days (on one of which I have to work again). **

**So here's to hoping you'll forgive me. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 7:**

_Previously:_

"_Stay," she said, stepping towards him. The gesture confused him, and it must've shown on his face, because she went on. "Stay here tonight."_

The words took a minute to register, but eventually, Spence replied. "What?" he asked, clearly confused.

Annabelle took another step closer. "There's a storm going on outside, and I don't think you'll be able to get back to D.C. at this hour with public transportation," she reasoned.

Spencer first glanced at his watch, and then at the window. The storm wasn't very powerful yet, but it was obvious it was only going to get worse. "I guess I should," he said, keeping his eyes on the window.

Annabelle smiled. "I'll make you a bed on the couch," she said, and moved into her bedroom to get sheets. Honestly, she didn't know what had made her make the offer. He was a grown man, and fully capable of getting home on his own. She knew that if anyone knew how they had met, they'd declare her insane, and maybe she was, but his presence soothed her. Unfortunately, he was the only man that didn't make her uncomfortable.

As she gathered the sheets, she couldn't help but think of her reaction to agent Hotchner at the Bureau. She bit her lip, it was probably obvious to trained professionals like them why she had refused to take the bag from the man. Because he was a man. Even some of her former friends made her nervous and panicky now, it was why she hadn't kept in touch. They'd all given up after a month or three. Of course, it didn't help that they thought that a one-night stand was completely out of character for her, and she hated lying to them.

Annabelle rested her head against the pile of sheets she was holding. She had no idea what she was doing. She couldn't keep up this isolation, and she really needed to find a job again. Her classes were keeping her busy for now, but they wouldn't pay her rent, nor all the stuff she needed for Matthew. She vowed she'd look for a part-time job in the morning.

Glad to have made that decision, she walked back into the living room, where Spence was sitting on the couch, reading one of her books.

"Never read C.S. Lewis before?" she asked when she saw the cover.

Spence looked up, almost surprised to see her standing there. He moved to the little armchair that stood beside the couch so Annabelle could start making the bed. "No, I've never found the time. Do you have the entire series?" he asked curiously, replacing the book on the coffee table.

"I have the box set in the bookcase over there. You should start with The Magician's Nephew, it's the first one chronologically speaking," she explained.

Spence came over to help her with the sheets, so they finished quickly. "Would you mind if I borrowed it?" he asked, looking a little pink in the cheeks.

Annabelle grinned. "Maybe you should take the entire box, seeing as you'll finish them by tomorrow anyway."

Spence grinned in affirmation, turning back to the book. Annabelle turned on a small lamp on the coffee table and turned off the main light. "You do have to work tomorrow, maybe you should get some sleep."

He nodded absently, turning another page. Annabelle checked over his shoulder. He was already at page 78. She rolled her eyes and left him to his own devices. He'd sleep eventually. "Goodnight, Spence," she whispered in the door opening."

/*/

Light was streaming through the window, and Annabelle was regretting not closing the curtains the previous evening. She rolled over so the sun wouldn't be in her face, and blearily blinked open her eyes. It was January, so it wasn't necessarily early, nor had she gone to bed especially late, but she felt a bit sluggish that morning. Maybe she had a cold coming on.

Slowly, she sat up and instinctively looked over at Matthew's crib. He was gone.

Annabelle jumped up from the bed, any sluggishness completely gone in the wake of the adrenaline now pumping through her system. She ran over to the crib, picking up the bunny JJ had gotten him, even though, logically, she knew he couldn't possibly be under there.

She fisted her hands in her hair, thinking furiously. She'd put him to bed and then–

Running into the living room, she came to an abrupt stop once the couch was in sight. The most adorable thing she had probably ever seen met her, in the form of a sleeping Spence and Matthew.

He'd probably heard Matthew wake up and, instead of waking me, had decided to sooth the baby back to sleep himself. Thinking back, it _was_ rather odd that she hadn't woken up a single time that night, seeing as Matthew was a far cry from sleeping through the night.

Spence was lying on his side, a small frown marring his face, while his arm was slung protectively over Matthew, who was sleeping on his back next to his father. He'd fisted his little hands in Spence's t-shirt overnight and was clutching it with that peculiar strength that babies sometimes had.

Raising a hand to cover her mouth, Annabelle was almost moved by the sight. Spence hadn't been ready to be a father – maybe he still wasn't – but he was working on it, and this view only proved how determined her was to get it right.

As softly as she could, she retreated back into her bedroom and retrieved her phone from her nightstand. JJ would kill her if she heard about this, but didn't get a picture.

Once she'd taken the picture and made sure it was a good one, she made to pick Matthew up, but decided against it. He'd wake up when he was hungry. She turned to the little kitchen and began fixing breakfast. It occurred to her that it was past ten in the morning and that Spence was late for work, but he looked so exhausted, and she didn't want to wake Matthew either, so she settled for sending JJ a text explaining what had happened.

_I want that picture! –JJ_ was the answer she got.

It wasn't long after that until Spence woke up. Annabelle glanced over her shoulder and saw the FBI agent sitting up with extreme care, his hands never leaving Matthew. His gentle handling was all for nothing, however, because the baby soon woke up as well and started crying.

Annabelle chuckled at Spence's panicked face and came over to take the infant from him. "Make sure the eggs don't burn, will you?" she asked, already going into the bedroom to start feeding Matthew.

She'd never seen Spence cook, but she assumed he was able to, considering he lived alone and didn't eat out all that often. When she got back into the kitchen with Matthew, she thought that maybe she should take him out more often. He hadn't burned the eggs, but he looked supremely uncomfortable, and the salt and pepper that she'd put next to the stove were untouched. Obviously, he didn't make himself eggs very often.

Breakfast was spent in amiable silence, with regular intervals of Matthew's antics. Annabelle held him on her lap as she ate with one hand. Spence had tried to ignore him in favor of his food, but hadn't been able to help himself in the end. He made silly faces at the infant, who giggled adorably.

It was during one such 'show' that Spence happened to glance up at the clock in the kitchen. His face fell. "I'm late," he whispered, already getting up from the table, his eggs forgotten on his plate.

Annabelle got up as well. "Spence, it's okay, I texted JJ while you were still asleep. I'm sure she's come up with an excuse, and you told me yesterday that you didn't have a case outside of Virginia. They'd have called you if they were going to go out of state, wouldn't they?" she reasoned.

Spence paused. "I still need to go, though. I've accumulated a lot of sick days, but I can't use them all now…"

Annabelle came over and fixed his collar. "You could ask for paternity leave…" she suggested hesitantly.

Spence looked pained. "My work's too important… If I–" he cut himself off.

She nodded. "You think that if you're not there some bad guy might get away…" she surmised, her eyes on the door.

Spence didn't reply, but Annabelle had the feeling he was incredibly uncomfortable. "Go. I'll text JJ that you're on your way," she replied eventually, walking over to put Matthew in his play pen and retrieved her phone from her pocket.

Spence smiled in gratitude. "I'll come by again tonight." And with that, he left Annabelle alone with her thoughts.

/*/

"You're early," Morgan commented sarcastically when Reid finally walked into the Bureau. Reid ducked his head, but didn't rise to the bait. "Had a nice morning with the missus?" Morgan teased again, coming over to lean against Reid's desk.

JJ swatted the bigger man's arm as she passed him and wordlessly handed her phone over to Reid, a huge grin on her face.

The man in question took it and looked at the picture that covered the screen. He should have known that Annabelle would take pictures. "What is that?" Morgan asked, craning his neck, but not actually making a swipe for the phone. Thankfully.

"It's nothing," Reid deflected. "Are we on a case?" he asked, changing the subject.

Morgan shook his head. "Just the two we'd started working on last week. And Hotch said he still needed your report, so you'd better get to it, loverboy."

Reid knew the other man was just teasing and was, in fact, happy that Reid now had another person – two people, really – but it was still very annoying. Especially since he didn't really know what Annabelle was to him…

Reid, being the person that he was, liked to compartmentalize. Everything in his life had a specific label and place in his mind. Annabelle was… difficult. She was a friend, he supposed, but she was also… well, the mother of his child… It was also uncomfortably obvious to the profiler, that she had similar problems in placing him.

It made for an uncomfortable situation, in all.

"Are you okay?" JJ asked, after having shooed Morgan back to his own desk. Those expressive grey eyes staring into his own, concern shining in them. JJ, the team – they were his family for so long, and now… now he had another one altogether, and he didn't really know how to handle that. Couple that with the immense guilt he still felt over what he'd done to Annabelle…

"How do you do it?" he asked, before he could stop himself.

JJ frowned. "Do what?" she asked, confused.

"You have a family at home, but… this is your family too, isn't it?" he asked, gesturing vaguely around the room.

JJ looked at him sympathetically. "I had time to balance it all out. I dated Will for a long time before we had Henry. You were thrown into it… It's not easy right now, but it will get better, with time."

Reid nodded. He wished he could ask her about the guilt that weighed so heavily on him. Would that get better, too? Or would he just get crushed by the weight? Or maybe he'd destroy Annabelle even more than he already had…

**A/N: This ending isn't on as high a note as I'm used to, but I did feel it was important to add in this mental dilemma for Reid. What happened was traumatic, for both parties involved, and it's not going to go away just like that. **

**Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, and I'm really interested in your theories/comments/opinions, so please review and let me know. They make my day, and I make sure the reply to every single one of them.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaand, there goes my updating schedule... I'm so sorry everyone, this wasn't supposed to take this long, but - as you'll see at the end of the chapter - it contains some seriously emotional scenes that just didn't want to come out right...  
**

**I probably won't be updating Saturday, just a warning. It might be Wednesday... I've got a lot on my plate right now, not to mention the other 5 fanfics that I'm trying to juggle (and am completely stuck on).**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**Chapter 8:**

Seriously, it was just a trip to the grocer's, Annabelle just couldn't understand why she was feeling so jittery. Maybe it was just because she'd left Matthew alone with a babysitter for the first time.

Kaylee, the girl who'd been their regular server at S&G's, had recently quit her job, because her usual ride couldn't take her all the way to Quantico anymore. When Annabelle had discovered that on her last visit to the restaurant, she'd asked the girl where she lived. Apparently, she lived a few blocks away from her own flat. Considering how good Kaylee had been with Matthew the few times that Annabelle had brought him there, she'd offered the teen a kind of probation period. The girl would come to the apartment, and take care of Matthew, while Annabelle tried to read instead of hovering. When that went well, Annabelle decided she needed to go to the store, and figured the baby would be fine with just Kaylee for an hour.

Apparently, _she_ wasn't as fine with it as her now-2-month-old was.

Annabelle was really trying not to be the cliché, anxious parent, but she just couldn't help it. She checked her phone for the hundredth time as she absently selected a pizza from the freezer in front of her. Honestly, she wasn't paying attention to what exactly was on it, but she didn't really care. She wasn't very picky, and she was in a hurry to get back home.

Shoving her phone back into her pocket, Annabelle stepped back from the freezer, and nearly ran into the person standing behind her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you," she said, turning around to face the man. He was sort of handsome, she supposed, but he showed a few signs of dishevelment. He was sporting a stubble, and there were slight bags under his eyes, his clothes were very casual and a little wrinkly. Not that she looked any better, but she could blame it on her little cry-monster at home.

"That's alright. In a hurry?" he asked, probably noting her shiftiness.

Annabelle was swaying from one side to the other, putting weight first on her left foot, then on her right, and she was fidgeting with the bag she'd been holding, but none of that had anything to do with her haste to get back home. The man's mere presence was causing her to stiffen, and she was getting nervous. No reason to let him know all that, though. "Yeah, first time leaving my son with a babysitter," she offered by way of an explanation.

The man smiled. "I know the feeling. My daughter is two now, but I still get anxious every time I leave her. It'll pass eventually," he assured her.

She eased up a little at the mention of a daughter. "I'm not sure, my son's only two months old." She offered a smile. When the man didn't reply immediately, she glanced at her watch. "I should get going, I really want to get back home," she said, hoping the man wasn't in a chatty mood.

He nodded. "Me too, take care," he said, turned on his heel, and walked into the next isle. Annabelle let out a sigh and relaxed her muscles again. This was getting ridiculous, that guy was just being nice, and here she was, nearly panicking.

She shook her head to clear it, and turned back to the freezers behind her. Pursing her lips, she went over her mental grocery list, made sure she had the M&M's Spence liked, and made her way to the cash register. As she was loading her groceries into the bags she'd brought with her, she realized that, as always, she'd bought a lot more than she had intended to – though she was sure she needed _all_ of it – and it would be seriously difficult to carry.

However, she somehow managed to get a grip, however dubious, on all the bags. She managed to get within a few feet of her car before one of the bags ripped, and her groceries spilled all over the ground. Annabelle groaned as she –somehow – managed to press the button on her keys and open the trunk of her car. She dumped her remaining groceries in, and crouched down to pick up the rest.

Luckily, most of the items now strewn over the ground were well-packaged and not very fragile. After she'd picked up about half of her stuff, a hand reached out, out of nowhere and grabbed the same can she had been reaching for. As their hands grazed, she jumped back and stared wide-eyes at the man she'd been talking to in the store. "I'm sorry," he said, putting the can in my open trunk. "I saw you having trouble, and I figured I'd help out. He picked up a few more items and deposited them in her car. "Are you okay?" he asked concernedly.

Her heart was pounding, and she could feel her hands tremble. With a shock, Annabelle realized that the emotion she was feeling was fear. No, not fear, sheer terror. She was frozen in place, but when the man reached out to touch her shoulder, she recoiled sharply. "Don't touch me!" she shouted, and ran for her car. She barely had enough presence of mind left to slam the trunk shut, before she jumped behind the wheel and sped out of the parking lot, leaving the incredibly confused man behind.

It took about two minutes for Annabelle to realize that she probably shouldn't be driving when she could barely see the road ahead of her. She pulled over by the side of the road and rested her head on her hands, trying to get some control over her breathing again. As ragged sobs tore through her, she fought the urge to curl up into a fetal position and not move, ever again.

A loud honk startled her enough to bring her out of her frozen state, and she managed to lift her head and slow her tears somewhat. She knew she couldn't stay there forever, and – without thinking – dialed a very familiar number.

"Reid," he said as he answered on the second ring. He sounded distracted and probably hadn't looked at the number before picking up. A split second later, she realized that calling him had been foolish; he had no car, and he was at work. No matter how flexible they were, they wouldn't like him running off every time she wasn't feeling okay.

"Hello?" he asked, when she didn't reply.

"It's Annabelle," she said, hating the crack in her voice.

"Annabelle?" he responded urgently. "What's going on? Are you alright? Is it Matthew?"

She could hear some rustling on the other side, and knew that he was moving to a quieter area. "No, I'm fine, we're both fine… I just… I just wanted to hear your voice, know how you were doing, but I guess I'm interrupting your work, aren't I?"

"It's no big deal… Are you sure you're alright? You know you can tell me," he said hesitantly. Annabelle could just imagine the expression on his face, all worried.

She sniffed once. "No, I'm okay, really. I was just watching a sad movie earlier, and I wanted to call you. I'll see you tonight, okay?"

Spence didn't answer right away, and she knew that he didn't entirely believe her, but he let it go eventually. "Okay. I'll see you tonight."

Annabelle hung up and stared at her phone. Who could she call now? She knew she was in no state to drive, but she didn't really have anyone to contact. Her parents were back in New York, and she wouldn't have called them anyway, they didn't know.

The only real friend she had left was JJ, and therein lay the same problems that she faced with Spence. She was at work and couldn't exactly come get her. Kaylee was out too. While the girl could drive, and had a car of her own, she didn't have a car seat for Matthew, and Annabelle was reluctant to let the young girl see her like this.

Immediately, another name sprang to mind; Mary Tyler. She was a classmate from the evening classes she'd been taking, and had been helping her catch up after Matthew had been born. Though she wasn't really her best friend, she was a really nice and gentle person, and there had been a kind of connection between the two of them since day one.

Annabelle scrolled through her contacts and paused at the name. She bit her lip as her thumb hovered over the dial button. She didn't have to tell her everything, and she was fairly sure that Mary wouldn't press her if she didn't want to talk about it. Taking a deep breath, she dialed.

Mary picked up after the first ring, but sounded a little distracted. "Hello?"

"Hey Mary, it's Annabelle."

"Oh, hey! Please tell me you have some kind of emergency so I can get out of here," she pleaded, sounding a little breathless, but amused at the same time. Some laughter could be heard in the background.

"Well…" Annabelle started, and Mary immediately picked up on the tremor in her voice.

"Tell me where you are, I'm on my way," she replied immediately, and Annabelle almost started crying again at the other woman's willingness to come to her aid.

She told her what road she was on and where exactly to find her, Mary assured her she'd be there in a few minutes and hung up. Now there was nothing more to do but wait.

Mary arrived – true to her word – a few minutes later, but as soon as she opened the driver's side door, Annabelle broke down again. She just felt so lonely and confused, and afraid.

Mary never said a word, just pulled her into a brief hug, and then led her back to her own car, going so far as to settle the younger woman into the passenger seat and buckling her seatbelt for her. As the car started to move, Annabelle's tears had slowed to the point where she could at least breathe somewhat normally.

They only drove for about three minutes, and when they arrived at their destination, Annabelle realized it was a small coffee shop. "I come here all the time, because I live close by. They have the best coffee ever. I thought you could use it."

Annabelle gave a watery smile, and wiped the last of her tears from her cheeks. She was aware that by now, her eyes must have been puffy and red from crying, but she didn't particularly care. Knowing Americans, they were unlikely to ask any questions, or even wonder what was wrong.

She sat down at a small table in the very back, away from the other customers, while Mary went to order their coffees. They didn't say anything as they waited for their drinks, but Mary had grabber her hand in silent support. Annabelle was grateful for it.

After the waiter had come and gone, Annabelle sighed shakily. "Thanks for coming out here for me. I didn't know who else to call…"

Mary waved a hand. "That's okay. My family's visiting, but they can be a bit… much, so I was actually glad for the distraction," she said, taking a sip. "How about yours? How's Matthew? And the guy you've been seeing, he treating you alright?"

Mary was from the south, though her accent was rarely audible. Annabelle loved the sound of it, though, it felt… homely, if that was the correct term. It made her feel safe and warm. "They're both fine, Matthew's with a babysitter, and Spence is at work, or I would've called him…"

Mar moved to the chair next to her, as opposed to the one opposite her, and put an arm around her shoulder. Annabelle could tell she was curious, but she held her tongue, apparently satisfied with just comforting her.

Another quiet sob escaped Annabelle, and she turned to bury her face in Mary's neck. The other woman just put a hand on her back and stroked it in slow circles. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Annabelle recalled that Mary was a mother of two, and that blubbering children were probably an everyday occurrence for her, but she couldn't help but feel embarrassed at the behavior she was showing. Her own mother would never have stood for it.

"It's just so hard." It came out as a whisper, though Annabelle had never meant to open her mouth at all. "I mean, Matthew, he's not… Spence…" She closed her eyes, backed out of the other woman's embrace and took a few calming breaths. Little hiccoughs still hampered her, but she could feel a calmness inside her that hadn't been present since she'd stepped into that store. Before she could really stop herself, she started telling Mary about how Matthew had truly come to be, every detail.

Mary never interrupted, and didn't look disgusted, as Annabelle had expected her to be. She simply nodded and listened, the only expressions crossing her face concern and worry. The words just poured from Annabelle's mouth, as if she couldn't stop herself. On the one hand, she was a little embarrassed and ashamed that she was telling this story to a virtual stranger, but on the other; the weight that was being lifted was like an ache she'd come to ignore, and was now finally going away. It was like she could finally breathe again.

When she finished her tale, her coffee was cold between her fingers and Mary had an unreadable expression on her face. Annabelle bit her lip, afraid that she might have said too much. She'd included the encounter in the parking lot that had set off her panic attack, but maybe Mary was finally realizing that she had been listening to a lunatic. Maybe she'd be too disgusted to driver her back to her car.

Without warning, the other woman leaned forward and nearly crushed her in a hug. "I am so, _so_ sorry."

**A/N: I got the name 'Mary' from my best friend 'MaryEvH', who is an amazing author of Les Mis fanfics (go read them!), and who helped me through this emotional tangle at the end. **

**I have to say, most of that last bit came out this well because I'd just had an argument with my sister and (while not nearly on the same scale) it left me with some emotional turmoil of my own, since she's one of the most important people in the world to me, so it inspired me to write. **

**Also, two teeny tiny Doctor Who references, for those who were paying attention! :) **

**review reply  
'justsaying: don't worry, Morgan will get what's coming to him, especially if he keeps pushing Reid the way he has been. At some point, the man might snap... Anyway, thanks for the review, I hope this reply reached you!**

**Anne**


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